Dual-Mode Optical Thermometry Based on the Fluorescence Intensity Ratio Excited by a 915 nm Wavelength in LuVO4:Yb3+/Er3+@SiO2Nanoparticles

The optical thermometry properties of LuVO4:Yb3+/Er3+@SiO2 nanoparticles (NPs) are studied in detail. In order to avoid the overheating effect for biological tissue caused by 980 nm radiation, 915 nm is employed as the excitation wavelength to investigate the upconversion (UC) and optical thermometry properties of the as-prepared NPs. In the visible region, the fluorescence intensity ratio (FIR) of the 2H11/2 and 4S3/2 levels of Er3+ is utilized to measure the temperature. The relative sensitivity SR in this case can be written as 1077/T2, which is higher than that of β-NaYF4:Yb3+/Er3+ NPs, β-NaLuF4:Yb3+/Er3+ NPs, YVO4:Yb3+/Er3+ NPs, etc. In the near-infrared (NIR) region, an anomalous enhancement of the 4I13/2 → 4I15/2 transition with increasing temperature is observed. What is more, the FIR of peak 2 (located at 1496 nm) to peak 1 (located at 1527 nm) is changed regularly with increasing temperature, which can also be used to measure the temperature. The combination of the visible and NIR regions for optical thermometry can provide a self-referenced temperature determination to make measurement of the temperature more precise. In addition, the UC mechanism is also investigated, especially the population route of the 4F9/2 level of Er3+. Through analysis of the decay curves, we propose that the dominant way for populating the Er3+ 4F9/2 level is energy transfer from the Yb3+ 2F5/2 level to the Er3+ 4I13/2 level. All of the results reveal the potential application of LuVO4:Yb3+/Er3+@SiO2 NPs for dual-mode optical thermometry.